Can I claim bonus after I've left the company

[clareyluxo]

The company I work for is due to pay out a bonus for the period May 2007-Apr 2008 for which I was employed for the entire period. Last year the annual bonus for the same period of the previous year was paid to employees in June. But we have been informed that this year it will be paid in September.

I am currently working my notice and I leave on 18th July and therefore leave before the bonus is paid.

The letter (this was only a letter and was not signed by the employee as accepted) that went out to everyone detailing the scheme said that you must be employed on the date that the bonus is paid to receive it. As this seems a little unfair I was wondering whether I could ask them to pay me the bonus - does anyone know if I would be able to do this or whether the letter would be legally binding despite me not having to sign it?

Thanks for any help.......

[PGH7447]

once you have left a company that tends to be that, after all you no longer work for them so why should you get a bonus, sorry

[clareyluxo]

My query is due to the bonus covers the period whilst I was employed by them and is in fact being paid late.

[Sidewinder]

Although I would tend to agree that most (although not all) bonus schemes specifically relate to the need for the employee to be employed by the company on the date of payment, not the date of calculation, there are the terms of your contract to consider.

Is the payment of bonus a term of contract, and if so, exactly what does it say? You mention a letter - was this to advise that the bonus will be paid late, or just to detail the scheme? If the letter was one whereby it just details the terms of a scheme, then this does not have to be signed in order to make it binding - working under terms without formally disagreeing with any particular clause would be deemed acceptance of something which forms part of your employment contract or changes a term of your contract. If your contract is not specific as to when you might expect to receive a bonus, but that whenever this is, you must be still employed by them, then you have little chance of getting anywhere. If the letter says that bonuses are payable with June salary, however, and you must be working on the date that payment is due in order to receive them, then this is a different matter.

In short, although I feel that you are on a hiding to nothing, any chance of success at all will be based on the terms of your contract either written (even if not signed) or implied by custom and practice. We need to know a little more about T&Cs.

[latay26]

My husband's ex employer withheld his regular bonus because he had left the company. He has just won his case a week ago in the civil court. Employment laws state that if a bonus has earned & would normally be expected to be paid, then the employer should still pay it. It does depend on whether or not its a regular bonus or a concessionary one thats dependant on the company's profit.
If its earned then you can claim, if its discretionary you can try but you may have a fight on your hands! It also depends on what your contract says. Ours was a fairly simple claim, but still took two hours in court to decide. This was his regular monthly bonus though, he was advised by ACAS to drop his claim for the concessionary one he was also claiming for.
Check out the employment tribunal site, it has all the info on this subject & we found it very useful. You can claim through them & its funded by the government.

Hope that helps

Good Luck!